ASN Wikibase Occurrence # 211518
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| Date: | Thursday 25 November 1999 |
| Time: | 14:34 |
| Type: |  Robinson R44 |
| Owner/operator: | Heli Scenic Flights & Training Pty Ltd |
| Registration: | VH-STO |
| MSN: | 0369 |
| Year of manufacture: | 1997 |
| Fatalities: | Fatalities: 0 / Occupants: 4 |
| Aircraft damage: | Minor |
| Location: | 41km NE of Hayman Island, QLD -
 Australia
|
| Phase: | Landing |
| Nature: | Passenger - Non-Scheduled/charter/Air Taxi |
| Departure airport: | Hayman Island, QLD |
| Reef World, QLD | |
| Confidence Rating: |  Information is only available from news, social media or unofficial sources |
The float fitted Robinson R44 helicopter was being used to conduct a charter flight from Hayman Island to Reef World. The pilot reported that about 20 minutes after takeoff, he noticed a burning smell, felt a slight shudder closely followed by the helicopter's clutch light dimly flickering. The pilot conducted a powered descent, transmitted Mayday calls and landed the helicopter in the water with minimal impact forces. The helicopter sustained damage to its aft cowling. The pilot and passengers were unhurt.
Examination of the helicopter revealed that the fan shaft bearing located on the fan shaft between the engine and the cooling fan had overheated, melted and seized.
The fan shaft had fractured just forward of the bearing. The fan shaft bearing is the lower actuator bearing of the clutch actuator assembly. The clutch actuator had fractured with the bottom half departing the aircraft. The sheave and tail rotor drive shaft were damaged by the V-belts. The engine had extensive overspeed damage and had moved off the aft mount. The upper frame was bent near the engine and the aft cowling was damaged as a result of excessive engine vibration and contact with separating components. The rocker assemblies on several cylinder heads were pushed through the rocker covers indicating the severity of the engine overspeed.
Sources:
1. https://www.atsb.gov.au/publications/investigation_reports/1999/aair/aair199905646/
2. https://www.regosearch.com/aircraft/au/STO
Revision history:
| Date/time | Contributor | Updates |
|---|---|---|
| 27-May-2018 12:37 | Pineapple | Added |
| 30-Oct-2018 20:22 | Dr.John Smith | Updated [Operator, Total occupants, Location, Source] |
| 09-Jun-2022 10:49 | Ron Averes | Updated [Location] |
Corrections or additions? ... Edit this accident description
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